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The Washington Wizards are one of the most frustrating teams in the league. There is talent on this team for sure but every time they look to be putting it all together they stumble, most recent case, they have won just 2 of their last 7 after getting to .500 a couple of weeks back.
The Boston Celtics return home on Monday night after a five-game road trip losing skid, and will look to halt an eight-game slid when they host the surging Houston Rockets.
This season the Jazz are 7-11 at home and the Nuggets are 8-9 on the road. The Nuggets are 19-17 ATS with an O/U record of 16-20 and the Jazz are 12-26 ATS with an O/U record of 18-20.
This is the second game of back to backs on the road for Miami so maybe the Nets are catching them at a good time. The Heat are cozy atop the Southeast standings and have closed the gap on Indiana atop the Eastern standings.
Both the Clippers and Lakers will be without their best offensive players, when the two rivals face off at the Staples Center on Friday night.
For a while there it was looking like the Celtics were going to be a lot better than expected but they have lost their last 5 games and and some of them have been pretty ugly.
The Dallas Mavericks will hit the road but get to stay in the state of Texas on Wednesday night as they will have a date with the San Antonio Spurs.
The Portland Trail Blazers and Sacramento Kings have already faced off twice during the 2013-14 NBA season, and they’re set to face off again Tuesday, Jan. 7.
Portland (26-8) at Sacramento (10-22)
Tuesday, Jan. 7 10:00 p.m. ET at Sleep Train Arena
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On the year, Portland has won the series 2-0. The team from the Pacific Northwest has won both games by an average margin of 12 points per contest, but Sacramento will look to make the third matchup a charm.
The Trail Blazers have been brilliant this season, but they’re coming off of a week that saw them go 2-2, losing twice in dramatic fashion. To the team’s credit, it did pull out a comeback win against the Oklahoma City Thunder, while also blowing out the Charlotte Bobcats; but two last-second losses to the New Orleans Pelicans and Philadelphia 76ers have brought to light that this team is indeed mortal, and it can indeed lose games in the clutch.
If all goes according to plan, Portland won’t have to worry about performing in crunch time. It’s something it has done well almost all season, but the goal here is to win big despite being on the road.
The last time these two teams met, Rudy Gay was still with the Toronto Raptors. Additionally, Isaiah Thomas hadn’t quite broken onto the scene, and while the team knows it has to contain DeMarcus Cousins, these two could be big-time difference makers.
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If Portland sticks to its regular defensive schemes, look for Cousins to have a big game. The Blazers haven’t double teamed bigs all season long, instead opting to give up points down low in an effort to better defend the three-point line.
Speaking of defending the three-point line, that’s exactly what Sacramento will have to do to keep up in this one. Despite being underdogs, the Philadelphia 76ers held Portland under 100 points (the Blazers entered that game as the No. 1 scoring team in the NBA) by making them look downright awful from long range. The Kings are the second-worst team in the Association at defending the three-point line (they’re also the second-worst team in terms of points allowed), which is going to be a problem come Tuesday.
Cousins will be slated to have a big game, but if anyone else is going to join him, look for it to be Thomas. The point guard will be going up against Damian Lillard, and while he’ll be forced to expend a ton of energy on defense, the offensive end is where he’ll take advantage of a young point guard who is less focused on defensive production.
Despite having home-court advantage, look for the Blazers to bounce back following their loss. They know that sustaining success means winning the winnable games, and this qualifies as one of those contests. Expect a good showing from Portland, taking away the idea of a crunch time showing when it’s all said and done.
Prediction: Portland 107 – Sacramento 95
The NBA regular season enters the first full week of the New Year with a number of intriguing matchups on this Wednesday’s slate.
The Magic are not a good team. They have lost their last three games and have won only three of their last 10.
Brooklyn is hoping the New Year will bring new luck but that seems unlikely as they are still on their road trip of death, playing the league’s best teams in Indiana, San Antonio and now Oklahoma City.
The Indiana Pacers will make the trip up to the Air Canada Centre to take on the Toronto Raptors on New Year’s Day. Toronto has been streaking since moving Rudy Gay out of town, while Indiana has been simply lights out this season, posting the top record in the Association at the close of 2013.
The NBA kicks off the New Year with five matchups on Wednesday’s slate.
The NBA kicks off the New Year with five matchups on Wednesday’s slate.
The Portland Trail Blazers and Oklahoma City Thunder have already faced off once throughout the 2013-14 NBA season, and while Portland won Round 1, it’s OKC with home-court advantage this time around.
It looks like the Bulls are still trying to figure out how they are going to win (or if) without Derrick Rose. They are still an elite defensive team but they are really struggling offensively and have lost 7 of their last 10.
